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WTOC-TV
'''WTOC-TV, ch. 11, is the CBS affiliate in Savannah, Georgia (United States). It's transmitter is located in downtown Savannah. It's owned by Raycom Media. History In October 1929, WTOC-AM signed on as the 1st radio station in the Savannah area, an enterprise of the Junior Board of Trade, a civic group that was the forerunner of the Savannah Jaycees. It was later purchased by William Knight, Jr., who later added an FM station in 1946. On Valentine's Day 1954, Knight took a great financial risk & established WTOC-TV as the 1st TV station in the Savannah area. WTOC radio had long been Savannah's CBS affiliate, so WTOC-TV joined CBS & has been with that network ever since. It carried programming from all 3 networks for 2 years until WSAV-TV signed on in 1956 & took the NBC affiliation. WTOC then shared ABC with WSAV until WJCL-TV signed on in 1970. Knight sold WTOC-AM-FM-TV to Aflac in 1979. Aflac sold off the radio stations; the AM station is now WTKS & the FM station is now WQBT. In 1996, Aflac sold it's entire TV group, including WTOC, to a group headed by Retirement Systems of Alabama, who merged it with Ellis Communications to form Raycom Media. For many years, WTOC broadcast from a studio on Abercorn Street in downtown Savannah. In 1995, it moved to a new studio on the west side of Savannah @ Chatham Parkway in 1995, known as "The News Place." Since that time, the downtown building has become the offices for the President of Savannah College of Art & Design. The station's large triangle tower can still be seen today along Abercorn Street. The station airs 6 hours of news a day, a considerable amount for a station in the 97th market. Unlike most stations which change their graphics & music after a few years of use, WTOC has used versions of Frank Gari's "Newschannel" package since 1987. A station editorial is presented by WTOC GM William Cathcart after the 11 PM newscast, usually every 2 weeks. Cathcart's views are usually very, very conservative in nature. Though the station's mailing address & website are given after each of these editorials, an opposing viewpoint is never presented on-air on WTOC. News department The station won both Emmy & Edward R. Murrow awards for news gathering efforts in 2003. In addition, the station pulled in 11 Georgia Associated Press Awards for the 2004. In 2005, Chris Clark won an Emmy for his football special & an Edward R. Murrow award for his story about a high school football player. In 2006 an Emmy was awarded to Mike Manhattan & Zach Powers for Freedom Fighters, a story about 3rd-ID Soldiers in Iraq. In 2007 Zach Powers, Alex Monarch & Chris Clark won an Emmy for editing a special series on Rosa Parks. The same year Chris Clark won the Emmy for best sports reporter. DTV The station's DT channel is multiplexed: Post-analog shutdown After the analog TV shutdown & DT conversion, which is tentatively scheduled to take place on February 17 2009, WTOC-TV will move it's DT broadcasts back to it's present analog ch. #, 11. Current news personalities Anchors *Sonny Dixon, 5 & 6 PM anchor, reporter & co-host of Mid-Morning Live *Jody Chapin, 5 & 6 PM anchor, reporter & co-host of Mid-Morning Live *Mike Manhatton, 5:30 & 11 PM anchor, reporter *Dawn Baker, 5:30 & 11 PM anchor, reporter *Mike Cihla, First Report, Daybreak, noon anchor, reporter & golf tip reporter *Karla Redditte, Daybreak, noon anchor & reporter Reporters *Dal Cannady, bureau chief *Jaime Dailey, Low Country reporter *Tim Guidera, features & sports reporter *Christy Hutchings, Nightbeat reporter *Brooke Kelley, education reporter *Don Logana, investigative reporter *Michelle Paynter, crime beat reporter *Melanie Ruberti, Health Notes reporter, weathercaster & substitute anchor *Ron Wallace, general assignment reporter & weekend weather anchor Weather *Patrick Prokop, chief meteorologist *Dave Turley, Daybreak & noon meteorologist *John Wetherbee, weekend meteorologist Sports *Rick Snow, sports director & anchor *Melissa Maikos, weekend sports anchor & reporter Former personalities *Jim Synnott *Dan Hogan *Richard Lantz *Gary Apple *Wendy Chioji *Mark Middleton *Doug Weathers *Johnny Cole *Kim Angelastro *Hena Daniels *Chris Cowperthwaite *Stacey Turner *Rona Williams *Ryan Young *Chris Clark *Nicole Teigen *Dmitra Denmark *Holly Bristow *Richard Rogers, now @ WRDW-TV in Augusta, Georgia *Jill Hayes *Steven Shoob, The "Phantom Producer" & Reporter (1950-2008, deceased) External links *WTOC 11, THE News' Website